let's do the fork in the garbage disposal
My proofreader is on vacation. Possible typos ahead.
My car is 10 years old. It has a CD player, but no port or jack to connect my iPhone. So when I’m driving, I spend most of my time listening to pop radio. Specifically WPGC, WHUR, and Hot 95.5. There are three songs I cannot escape: Harry Styles crooning about how something is just the same as it was, SZA’s “Kill Bill,” and Beyoncé’s “Cuff It.” Sometimes “Cuff It” is playing on two stations at the same time. Top 40 radio is like, “You like this song? Cool. We’re gonna make you listen to it every 20 minutes until you hate it.”
Like they used to do with Rihanna songs.
I watched the Rihanna Bowl on Sunday and loved it. I was hoping she would open with the line “Don’t act like you forgot” from “BBHMM.” I got the song right at least.
For a split second I thought, “Huh, she’s not putting much physical effort into this.” Then realized she didn’t have to. Not just because she’s in her second (third?) trimester, or because she was standing on a moving 18-ton glass plate suspended by a few cables several hundred feet over the field. But because she doesn’t have to prove a damn thing to anyone; her track record speaks for itself.
The best things about the performance were the TikTok videos afterwards. The backup dancers over the moon that they got to keep their “marshmallow” costumes, showing us how the various parts snap together to stay in place, describing the democratic approach to recruiting, where anyone could submit a short video online, and then be chosen to come in for an audition. Some of them had no idea Rihanna was even pregnant. But all of them said this was one of the most amazing and exciting experiences of their young lives so far. It’s almost like Rihanna was doing this event as much for them as she was for herself or the audience. At least, I’d like to think so.
I'm also predicting marshmallows will be everywhere on Halloween. Easiest costume ever.
Links
My favorite post-Rihanna Bowl reaction. Someone give this woman a Netflix special. (TikTok)
Thanks to an argument between my QL, glutes, and hip rotator thing, I now have to spend a ton of time stretching and doing these weird PT exercises. It’s boring as hell, so I’m using podcasts to distract me. I especially enjoyed this episode of Back Issue about "In Living Color," which was directly responsible for these huge Super Bowl halftime performances. (Pineapple FM)
I will read anything Patricia Lockwood writes. This story is wild. (London Review of Books)
SF Muni still runs on 5-inch floppy disks. (San Francisco Standard)
Pickleball Fashion is my new band name. (NYT)
We’re gonna open for Toilet Plume. (Atlantic)
Didn't understood Tom Holland's appeal until I watched this old video. (YouTube)
Punk rock grandmas! (Open Culture)
Woodpeckers from hell. (My Modern Met)
Flying squirrel from hell. (Boing Boing)
Giraffes do WHAT? (Gizmodo)
Cute Vespa trailer. (Mashable)
For people with pets: This is creepy and funny at the same time and I hope you use it for your holiday cards. (Petswitch)
I wish I could explain why this makes me so happy: Let's do the fork in the garbage disposal! (TikTok)